


The Path Home

by TheCrimsonJaguar



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Infinity Train (Cartoon)
Genre: Amnesia, Crossover, Gen, I don't actually know anything about Britain, I hope I got the donna and doctor interactions right, I'm begging you, One One is he/him pronouns I'm sorry if this is wrong, Spoilers For Both Shows, first time writing Doctor Who characters don't be mad, guys go watch infinity train, one one is one (1) singular entity in this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:48:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26231443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheCrimsonJaguar/pseuds/TheCrimsonJaguar
Summary: A robot is found in Antarctica. It turns out there are more impressive things than the TARDIS out there. What's right isn't always easy. Donna wants an adventure where lives aren't at stake. All these things are connected, and Donna probably isn't getting what she wants.
Relationships: Tenth Doctor & Donna Noble
Comments: 4
Kudos: 32





	The Path Home

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Firstly, if you have HBO Max and you have not watched Infinity Train, please do!! It's really good! (It's in danger of not being continued despite being very well written) If you like Doctor Who there's a good chance Infinity Train'll catch your eye too. If you have not watched Doctor Who, all you really need to know that this is the Doctor and Donna Noble, and they're dumbasses (They aren't a couple!!). Doctor Who is also a really good show, but it's also really long so only pick it up if you've got the time <3

He sat there, alone in the snow. The sky was grey, and the land was slowly being cast into darkness. The sun set, unseen beyond the haze. He could move, if he chose to. He could think, if he tried. But there was some sort of barrier, some sort of force preventing him. Blocking him.

He could not feel the air, but he was sure it was cold. The situation was... familiar. He couldn't recall why. _He should be alarmed_ , one part of him said, _He was dying_ . Another part said it was too much effort _to care_ , too much work _to move_. These parts were merely feelings, talking to each other as they always had. 

There was a sound. It was an odd sound. Loud, grating, like an electric elephant wheezing. Very odd. Then, a shadow loomed over him, further blocking out the light. A door opened, and then footsteps. Voices. Talking. This, more than anything he had experienced before, woke him from his lethargy. He tried to move, tried to speak, but he was too slow, too stiff. Frozen over.

He couldn't. He couldn't, and it brought a wave of panic to him. He loved people, he loved them so much. They were everything. If they didn't see him, he'd be alone again. He didn't want to be alone. He wanted to see the people. He wanted to try and meet them.

Desperation overtook him, making him power through the block in his processors, and he sparked. Smoke billowed from his cracked surface, but the voices soon grew closer. 

_Success!_ A part of him cheered, and the other merely sighed as darkness overtook him.

* * *

"Where's this supposed to be?" Donna asked, opening the door to the TARDIS. She grimaced as a harsh cold wind instantly battered her face. She immediately slammed the door shut and wrapped her arms around herself, trying to fend off the frostbite.

"Antarctica!" He said, surprised. He walked away from the console, appearing at her side. "We're in Antarctica. I don't know why we're in Antarctica, but we're in Antarctica!" 

Donna gaped at him for a moment.

"You said we were going to the beach," She said, slowly.

The Doctor peeked through the window. "Well, we're on _a_ beach, just not a very warm one," 

Donna gestured to her attire. It was a sundress with sandals. The Doctor considered this for a moment.

"You... have gastrointestinal problems?" He guessed. Donna looked at him. It was not a kind look.

"You said we were going to have a nice day on the beach! Not that we were going to Antarctica!" Donna said, pointing outside. " _Why are we in Antarctica??_ " 

"For a reason, probably." He said, brow furrowing slightly. He stepped past her and cracked the door open. All he could see beyond was an endless plain of ice and sky. It was gloomy.

"For a _reason?_ " Donna asked, "What kind of answer is that?" 

"Donna, did you not hear how I said just two seconds ago that I didn't know why we ended up in Antarctica??" The Doctor asked, looking back at her.

"It's your spaceship, you alien idiot!" She snapped back. 

The Doctor didn't respond, and only turned back to the door. He set his jaw and scowled.

"Why are we in Antarctica?" He asked lowly to the snow outside. 

"That's what I'm asking!" Donna said, throwing her hands into the air. 

The Doctor stood straight and adjusted his coat. He cracked his knuckles for good measure.

"Well there's only one way to find out why the TARDIS brought us here! Let's go get some coats," He said, swinging on his heel and marching off to a closet.

"I'm gonna need more than a coat for Antarctica!" Donna huffed to herself. She then followed him, for lack of any other saner option. 

Once properly dressed(ish), they walked outside. It was, predictably, freezing. Donna stood in the snow, her boots half submerged. She buried her face into her scarf, and somehow managed to seem annoyed despite not showing her face.

The Doctor looked around. There was nothing too out of place. It was on the cusp of winter, the sun finally setting and about to cast the ice land into six months of darkness. It would have surely been a beautiful sight, if the sky could have been seen.

And there was snow on the ground.

"There's snow on the ground," He said aloud, kicking a plume of white into the air.

"Yes, there's snow on the ground, we're in Antarctica!" Donna said from within her scarf cocoon, "I think that's a fairly well known fact!" 

The Doctor clucked his tongue. "It is, and it's not completely true. Antarctica is all ice. It rarely snows, and when it does it usually turns to ice," He gestured to the miles and miles of thick snow, "And there's a lot of snow here," 

"So?" Donna asked. She couldn't really care less about snow in Antarctica. She'd care more if she was on a beach in California, with a fancy drink in her hand. She couldn't even wear her new dress she bought. 

"So! So?! So what!" The Doctor said, suddenly growing loud, "That's a good question Donna, what you asked before. Why are we here? What in the entire universe is interesting about snow in Antarctica?!" 

He kicked another plume of snow into the air.

"Hello! Is there anything interesting out there!?" He shouted to the continent. 

There was no response, not even an echo. He slumped a bit.

"You done?" Donna asked.

"I suppose. I just don't get why the TARDIS brought us here. She usually has a good reason for bringing me to odd places," He said.

"Well, maybe she decided to prank you or something," Donna suggested. The Doctor shook his head. 

" _Pranks_ aren't the TARDIS's style, Donna." He said. He scratched his head. There was something important, he just knew it. He just couldn't see it. And he didn't think Donna would be open to walking through miles of snow to find out. 

"Well, I'm going back in. Enjoy your snow in Antarctica, when you're done we can go to the beach." Donna said, heading back to the TARDIS. 

There was a loud _SNAP SNAP_ from behind the blue box. Donna paused, and then sighed. 

The Doctor was already running to the other side of the TARDIS. She followed, reluctantly.

He was crouched over a hole in the snow. The hole was smoking. She frowned. The Doctor squinted at the hole, reaching into his coat and pulling out his screwdriver. 

She crouched down next to the hole and looked inside.

A white ball, with a single black line running around its circumference sat in the snow. Large spindling cracks ran across its surface, passing through the black line and onto the other hemisphere. The cracks oozed smoke into the air, hot compared to the cold winds. Little legs stuck out in odd angles, one of them missing a joint and another dented. 

"A ball?" Donna asked.

The Doctor brought his screwdriver to the ball, but quickly pulled back when it made a loud tone. 

" _Excuse me?_ " The Doctor asked the ball, offended. He brought the sonic screwdriver back to the ball, scanning it again. It again made the loud tone, this time causing the screwdriver to repeat it. The screwdriver then decided it was a good time to not function.

The Doctor looked from the ball, then back to his screwdriver, offended at both. 

"Did you just _phreak_ my screwdriver!?" He asked.

"The ball did _what?_ " Donna asked, knowing the words individually but not how they went together. 

"The robot just hacked into my sonic screwdriver!" The Doctor grumbled, scowling at the ball. 

"It's a robot?" She asked, "Why's it out here?" 

The Doctor smacked the sonic screwdriver against his hand, to no avail. He grit his teeth.

"Why's it out on the coast of Antarctica in half a meter of snow?" He asked his screwdriver, then turned to Donna, "Why's it out here, damaged, and hacking my screwdriver? There's only one way to find out." 

"Well, if finding out means going to the beach, or at least somewhere warmer, I'll be joining you. If not, you're on your own." Donna said. She stood back up and trudged back to the front of the TARDIS.

The Doctor looked around the barren landscape. There was nothing there. Nothing inherently wrong with the snow, with the ice, the air, the sky. The sun set, and the land grew colder. He looked down at the tiny robot, and scowled.

"What are you doing out here?" He asked. He loved a good mystery. He usually liked them more when his screwdriver worked properly. He pocketed the screwdriver and scooped up the robot, against his better judgement. He dug around the snow for a moment and pulled out the robot's missing leg. Cradling the robot in his arms, he carried it inside. 

Donna was shaking off her boots as the Doctor entered. She looked over.

"Is it safe? To bring it in here?" She asked.

"I don't know." The Doctor said.

"Oh, that's real smart of you, then, bringing it in here," She said.

"I need to fix it," He said.

"Is _that_ safe?" Donna asked.

"Probably not," The Doctor said. 

"You're on a real winning streak today." She said.

"I need... I need to fix my screwdriver first." He said, then hummed, "Donna, watch the robot for me, I need a part."

The Doctor set the robot on the console, then rushed off to find whatever it was he needed.

" _Oi!_ Spaceman! Don't leave me with a potentially deadly robot! _Doctor!_ Get back here!" Donna shouted after him. She looked back to the robot, sitting innocently on the console. It had stopped smoking, at least. Perhaps it was some sort of weather thing? An odd sort of wildlife camera? It did blend pretty well into the snow. Perhaps it wasn't meant to be picked up.

She approached it, slowly, and held out a hesitant hand. Donna brought her palm to the cold surface, and found it to be plastic. Hard, thick plastic, though. Maybe it wasn't plastic actually, and instead some strange sort of metal. It was hard to tell. She ran a thumb over the black line. That, at least, felt like glass. 

It sparked, and she jolted away.

"Hey!" She snapped at the robot, "No funny business! I _will_ punt you across the room," 

It sparked again, and she took a step back.

"Doctor?" She called, hoping her voice carried.

It sparked once more, a quick puff of smoke shot out of the cracks in the ball. 

Then, the black line gained two white dots. The dots flickered for a second, and then settled.

"H-Hello!" The robot greeted, "Who are-are you?" 

Donna stared. The robot had a very glitchy voice, stuttering between words and syllables. Not to mention it had sounded completely different after it said hello, as if it suddenly had a different voice.

"I'm not telling you who I am, you haven't even told who you are, or what you are, or why you're here," She said, not very loudly, then seemed to remember, " _Doctor!!_ " She shouted down the hall. 

"I'm One-" It sparked, the dot 'eyes' flickering, "-One." 

It raised one of its little legs in a wave, but unfortunately sparked again, and the leg popped apart at the joints. 

"Fallen apart, like m-my hopes and dreams," The robot said grimly. 

Donna raised an eyebrow. 

"Are you evil?" She asked, "Y'know, take over the world, hate humanity, that sorta thing?" She asked, and then mentally kicked herself. If it was evil it wouldn't tell her it was evil.

"I'm morally ambiguous!" It said, rather cheerily, and then added, "I'm m-more chaotic good, but sometimes I'm lawful neutral." 

"...Huh." Donna said. 

"I really like peo-eople, though." The robot said, and Donna nodded slowly.

"Now tell me your name," The robot- One One said, sounding expectant.

"No." Was Donna's immediate answer. 

"Ooh! Oh, I can guess it!" One One said, and then hummed. Its voice crackled as it hummed a tune. A tune which, if she remembered correctly, sounded awfully familiar to the tone that had hacked the Doctor's screwdriver.

"Is it... Horseradish?" It asked.

" _No_." She said, slightly miffed.

"Daisy?" It asked.

"No..." 

"Uhm..." It trailed off, "Are you named after a perennial flower?" One One asked.

"Not that I know of," Donna said slowly, confused

"Lame." One One said. Donna made a small noise of offense. 

The Doctor then decided to finally show his face. He rushed in, sonic screwdriver in one hand, another non-sonic screwdriver in the other. A layer of soot covered his face, which looked hastily rubbed off. Donna didn't want to know.

"I fixed it! Not to worry, we'll be figuring this out in a jiffy-" The Doctor paused. He looked at the robot. One One looked back, the little eye dots curving up into crescents. 

"Hello!" One One greeted.

"Hello," The Doctor said in return, then turned to Donna, and whispered, "When did it turn on?" 

"Ten seconds after you left," She said.

"Why didn't you call for me?!" The Doctor asked.

"I am about to strangle you, space-face." She said, and the Doctor backed off. 

"Alright, _alright_. What did it say to you?" He asked, changing the subject.

"That his name is One One- or maybe just One, and that he's ' _morally ambiguous_ '." She said.

"Oh, that's a bit blunt." The Doctor said, "Usually robots are a bit more careful about disclosing information like that." 

"His- Its leg fell off." She said pointing to the little digit on the floor of the TARDIS.

The Doctor frowned, and then clicked the sonic screwdriver on.

"Okay!" He said loudly, "One One. Little robot. I'm going to use this," He held the screwdriver up, "And I'm going to scan you." 

He leaned in and looked pointedly at One One.

"You. are. not. going. to. _hack_. it." He said.

"Okay!" One One said brightly.

The Doctor brought the screwdriver to One One, the sound making an odd reverb in the room. The Doctor's expression shifted from focused, to surprised, to excited all in the span of a moment.

"Ugh, how annoying." One One said. 

"You... you've got _two_ personalities." The Doctor said, smiling, still scanning, "Oh, you're a complicated piece of machinery, aren't you?" 

"I am a rare and exceptional butterfly," One One said, sounding proud. 

"Oh, but you've only got one brain!!" The Doctor said, grinning ear to ear.

"It's a very nice brain!" One One said happily.

"And let's see..." The Doctor set the screwdriver down on the console, running his hands over the ball. His fingers met on the black line, and then gently pried.

One One abruptly split in half, revealing more little legs inside, the outer legs shifting to the new flat surface. 

" _You split apart!_ " The Doctor said, overjoyed. He held the two halves of One One in each hand, examining the little legs that now moved freely.

"I _do?_ ; I'm an atom," One One said, his two voices speaking in turn.

The Doctor set on half back onto the console, the robot quickly flipping over until he stood on those little legs. Only one eye dot was on his black line, and he watched as the Doctor wiggled his other half's legs. 

" _Hee_ , that tickles," The half in the Doctor's hand said, sounding mild.

"Will you tell me your name now?" The other half asked, now turned to Donna. 

Donna had watched the entire exchange in wonder, how the Doctor's concern and worry had almost instantly melted. How the little robot was covered in long cracks. How the half of One One looking at her now had an upward-turned crescent for an eye, making him look pleased. 

"Donna," She said.

"That's a pretty name for a pretty lady," He said, and waved it's broken nub at her.

"Aw," She said, smiling sincerely for the first time since they reached the Antarctic. She reached down, picked up the fallen limb off the ground, and presented it back to the robot. One One held the end of his nub to the limb, and with a small beep, the two pieces clicked back together. 

"Ouch." One One said, moving the leg to see if it worked.

"You're awfully cute for someone morally ambiguous," Donna said.

"Maybe all cute things are morally ambiguous," The other half said in the Doctor's hands.

"There are good things about me, and there are some bad things too." The half in front of her said.

"Like all people." The Doctor said, setting the two halves next to each other. They quickly clicked together, becoming a ball once more. He smiled at One One, and while the robot had no mouth, he gave the distinct impression of smiling back. 

**Author's Note:**

> I almost titled this 'ConDoctor' but my body rebelled against my mind and you were all spared. For now.
> 
> ps: if you don't have HBO Max and are interested in watching Infinity Train, yar har har get some adblock and swoop on over to kimcartoon.


End file.
